The 9 Most Luxurious Spas in Colorado

Indulge in the name of health. Colorado has been named the least-obese state in the country, and the number one in physical activity, according to the United Health Foundation’s annual health rankings. It’s a great fit, then, to plan a wellness getaway to Colorado.

A spa can be an important part of overall health, and Colorado has some reputable ones. Treatments, such as massage, can reduce stress, improve circulation and more.

If you want to add a spa visit to your itinerary, we know where to go for the best experience. Here are Colorado’s nine most luxurious spas to add to your relaxation list.

01 of 09

Four Seasons Vail

Aimee Heckel

The upscale ski town of Vail is a great wellness destination. It’s home to one of Colorado’s top spas, the Spa at Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail. This spa is one of the few Forbes Five-Star Spas in Colorado. It’s the only spa with that high honor in Vail Valley.

The Four Seasons’ outdoor pool and hot tubs provide dramatic, direct views of the ski slopes, and the resort is ideally located right in the heart of town.

The spa itself has a co-ed relaxation lounge and a private spa patio (made with a heated floor, so your toes are warm, even when it’s snowing outside) with an herb garden and cozy fireplace. Get healthy food delivered to your chair while you relax with a glass of wine next to the flames.

Even if you’re not a guest at the Four Seasons, you can catch some rest in the spa’s Slumber Room. This quiet sanctuary has lounge chairs and blankets for you to cuddle up in and close your eyes.

The spa also has cool plunge pools, a water circuit, dry sauna, a grotto-style hot tub (with small waterfalls,) and a eucalyptus steam room. Except to find fruit-infused water throughout the spa. The fitness center is top-of-the-line.

Spa decor is inspired by nature, with natural light and earth tones, and treatments use organic ingredients.

Another fun treatment is the Bourbon Cowboy, which includes a hot milk bath with a glass of local bourbon, a bourbon scrub, and agave nectar oil massage.

02 of 09

Ritz-Carlton Denver Spa

Ritz-Carlton

If you want the best spa in Denver, head to the Ritz-Carlton Spa. The Ritz spa continually receives a Forbes Four-Star rating.

The spa itself has recently been renovated, and it includes a private gym with fitness classes, plus a whirlpool and steam room, a great way to counteract Colorado’s dry air. Its mani-pedi room is sleek, modern and hard to beat if you want the perfect nail. It also claims to be the only spa in downtown with a vichy shower, a sort of table waterfall that can be incorporated into treatments for extra relaxation or circulation.

The spa also has a Ritz Kids menu, menus specifically for men, treatments for wedding parties and offerings for pregnant women.

Try this: A couple’s massage is a romantic way to celebrate. Upon request, staff will even scatter rose petals or set up champagne and strawberries in your massage room. End the treatment with a meal delivered to the spa, which you can enjoy together in your bathrobes. The spa has a full menu of healthy food; Elway's, one of the state's top steakhouses, can prepare food to be sent to the spa.

For something fun, try a beer-infused spa treatment. The spa offers a microbrew massage, complete with a cold beer (local, of course).

03 of 09

Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch

Courtesy photo

Yes, another Ritz-Carlton, but they’re both worth highlighting. This Ritz, located in Beaver Creek, has a ton of awards. This is not only one of the best hotels in Colorado, but one of the best in the world, and with a spa to match. Plus, in the winter, it's ski-in/ski-out property with private slopes.

The hotel features lovely outdoor pools and jacuzzis, but the 21,000-square-foot spa inside is the real scene-stealer. You can relax in a dim, co-ed grotto; hot tubs are surrounded by a dramatic cave of rocks. The men’s and women’s locker rooms have smaller grottos, part of a grotto hydrotherapy circuit, complete with a cold plunge pool, eucalyptus essential oil steam room, toasty whirlpool, and shower.

04 of 09

Broadmoor Spa

Courtesy photo

The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs is well-known as one of the state’s most luxurious places to stay. It’s a AAA Five-Diamond resort, and it’s award-winning spa just tops it off. This spa was named a Forbes Five-Star Spa, which is one of the highest spa honors. The therapists here are a step above the rest, and treatments are personalized to meet your individual needs.

The spa includes dry saunas, steam rooms, aromatherapy rooms and fireplace lounges, as well as a co-ed relaxation room with views of the golf course. If you want to stay a while, order food from the healthy menu. Products here are natural and as organic as possible.

After your treatment, go golfing or explore Seven Falls, a beautiful waterfall owned by the Broadmoor.

Try this: The Wine Down treatment utilizes a “wine therapy line.” Turns out, chardonnay’s grapeseed extract contains great antioxidants. The treatment is hydrating and claims to also be anti-aging. Try a Chardonnay sugar scrub and then a massage with wine therapy oil.

Continue to 5 of 9 below.

05 of 09

St. Julien Hotel and Spa

St. Julien Hotel & Spa

The St. Julien is Boulder’s best hotel spa and one of the finest in Colorado, awarded an AAA Four-Diamond award.

Its 10,000-square-foot spa offers a full-service menu, featuring some of the best nail services in the state if you need a no-fail mani. The spa was recently renovated, so it feels fresh and modern. The fitness center is, well, good enough for uber-fit Boulderites, so you know it’s top-notch.

The St. Julien pool and hot tub feature dramatic views of the Flatiron Mountains, even though the spa is located in the heart of downtown Boulder.

But what really sets the St. Julien Spa apart is how personalized everything is. Spa treatments are totally customizable and one-of-a-kind. Some products are crafted using herbs out of the hotels’ own garden.

Try this: The Pampered Vegan Treatment—even if you’re not a vegan, it's a highlight on the menu. Get a vegan body scrub (using pure organic sunflower oil and fine sugar), followed by an essential oil massage and scalp massage with wild lime and avocado oil.

06 of 09

Spa Anjali at the Westin

Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa

The Spa Anjali at the Westin in Avon, near the ski town of Beaver Creek, has earned an international reputation for being one of the best spas in the world.

SpaFinder Wellness 265 named this spa one of the Best Spas for Ski and Snowboard. Organic Spa Magazine named it one of the Top 10 Green Spas for 2013. Shape Magazine awarded the spa the Best Hotel Pool. The honors go on, and all are well deserved.

The decor here is inspired by nature, with reclaimed wood and tree branch light fixtures, which provides an interesting ambiance. Even the fitness center, with its oversized windows, brings the inspiration of the outdoors inside. The center offers fitness classes and yoga.

Before your treatment in one of 14 treatment rooms, relax in the infinity hot tubs overlooking the river.

Try this: For something unique, book a Chakra Blessing. This spa offers three different “journeys” to choose from, with different treatments and intentions. The Rocky Mountain Journey, for example, uses local herbs and ingredients. Like the Ponderosa Pine Therapy, which uses ancient Native American remedies and includes deep tissue massage and light stretching, with a heated poultice filled with sage, pine, and lavender.

07 of 09

Spa at the Brown Palace

Aimee Heckel

The historic Brown Palace in downtown Denver is a favorite luxury getaway, especially for people who appreciate architecture, tea and elegant Victorian influences. The spa here is also full of personality and excellent service.

The Spa at the Brown Palace is easy to find, right off the hotel lobby, where you can often see people sipping high tea and champagne. The spa has relaxation rooms and a eucalyptus aromatherapy steam room.

Try this: A couple’s mani-pedi is a fun date. First, enjoy champagne brunch and afternoon tea. Then head to the spa for a foot soak and scrub while you sit in massage chairs. Add heat therapy, exfoliating scrubs and a hand and forearm massage to your polish.

All of that is a wonderful treat, but here’s what makes this an only-at-the-Brown-Palace experience: You can book a special soak that draws from the natural, artesian well located beneath the hotel.

08 of 09

Allegria Spa in Beaver Creek

Allegria Spa

If you’re a spa lover, put this on the top of your list. The Allegria Spa at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek is one of the best in the world. The spa’s water circuit, Aqua Sanitas, is hydrotherapy at its best, with multiple pools (the Thermae Pool and Calarium Jacuzzi), a Caldarium steam room, a Cascata hurricane shower, and an essential oil-infused relaxation room called a Tepidarium, with unique, heated stone loungers. It is modeled after ancient Roman baths. Aqua Sanitas is free with your service, even though it, alone, outshines many spas best treatments.

The Spa & Salon at Garden of the Gods Club & Resort

Aimee Heckel

Head here for the ultimate wellness getaway. The Garden of the Gods Club and Resort has it all, including a golf course, pool, and, of course, easy access to the popular Garden of the Gods rock formations.

The full-service spa features everything from an herbal sauna and steam room to Italian pedicure chairs and showers inspired by ancient Roman Salude per Aqua.

Try this: The Haslauer Pure Sense Soft Pack Bed is one of the most interesting treatments around. One hour in the Austrian weightless environment bed is said to provide the same benefits as one full night of sleep. Float on this table while you receive the Cleopatra Milk & Honey Float and a scalp and facial massage, while wrapped in a cocoon.

After your treatment, relax in the salt cave. "Halotherapy" (salt inhalation is fused with infrared deep heat therapy to detoxify the body.